


Memories

by Carmenpony



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Gen, Repressed Memories, Therapy
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-26
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-28 04:36:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17176025
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Carmenpony/pseuds/Carmenpony
Summary: “It wasn’t real,” Dipper chanted to himself, “it was never real. There’s no such thing as monsters or demons.” Dipper looked at his face reflected in the mirror. The silver pine tree on the journal gleaming almost  teasingly, “it was all in your head.”





	1. prologue part one

**Author's Note:**

> kcab eerhT

Patricia and Maxwell Pines couldn’t help but worry about their children sense they returned home. It started off with the stories of gnomes, unicorns, and time travel. The stories by themselves weren’t that much of a problem. Sure their insistence it was real was somewhat concerning, but that could easily be written off as a child’s overactive imagination, them playing a prank on their parents or some combination of both. And then the nightmares started. It was quite, subtle things at first bags under their eyes, falling asleep on their feet, the slight jumpiness. There were other things too scars on Dipper’s arms that looked like someone had stabbed him with a fork, Mable removing anything in her wardrobe that had triangles, their stiffness and refusal to hug their parents when they had first gotten home. One night lest than a month after the twins returned Mable started screaming. Patricia and Maxwell were in the twin’s room within seconds bursting through the open door but Dipper had beat them to it. He was hugging his sister whispering inaudible reassurances to her. They didn’t even notice their parents when Mable calmed down and the twins returned to sleep. 

That night their parents scheduled a appointment with a therapist for the very next day. 

——————————————

Dipper couldn’t help but scowl at the currently unoccupied couch in front of him. Mable sat next to him her face buried in her sweater in guilt. Dipper didn’t know how he missed his parents as he comforted his sister after yet another nightmare. They were normally so carful always keeping the door closed, and usually piling some of Mable’s mountain of stuffed animals to muffle any sound they may make during the night. They were just so tired last night. For the past week the twins would be lucky if they shot four hours of sleep last night. Bill might have been gone, but apparently that didn’t stop him from haunting their dreams. Every single night the twins were woken up either by their own nightmare or trying their best to comfort their twin. 

“We really appreciate you doing this on such short notice,” their mother’s voice said outside the door. 

“It’s no trouble at all,” a kind sounding man soothed, “I have a child myself. A bit younger than yours, but I would do anything for her.”

“Thank you so much.” Their father replied, “do you want us in the room?”

There was a pause, “No, I think it would be best if I talk with them alone. You and your wife can just wait in the waiting area for now.”

There was a sound of a pair of footsteps walking away then the door opened revealing a lanky man with messy blond hair and green eyes. He walked up to the children extending a hand. 

“Hello my name is Alexander Jameson, please just call me Alex.”

Dipper stared at his hand like it was coated in flames. While Mable didn’t move from within her sweater. 

“Yeah,” Dipper said scowling at Alex’s offered hand, “I’m not big on the whole hand shaking thing doctor Jameson.” 

Alex immediately retracted his hand, “of course. Now then Dipper apparently you and your sister have had a few problems sleeping the past few nights,” at this Mable gave a guilty sound, “would either of you want to talk about why?” 

Dipper didn’t say anything, and if possible Mable retreated further into her sweater. 

“Ok,” he soothed, “would you be willing to talk to me about your summer?”

Dipper shrugged, “we spent it with our Grunkle.”

“Really,” Alex said latching onto the response, “and what did you do there?”

“We explores and stuff,” Dipper mumbled. 

The rest of the session was spent with Alex asking questions, Dipper giving short curt answers, and on rare occasions Mable emerging from her sweater to have nonverbal conversations with her brother. It was difficult, but it was process nonetheless. 

After the longest hour of Dipper and Mabel’s life, they were merciful set free. This session had been extremely last minute, so Alex had to squeeze them in between two of his other patients. 

As the twin’s father ushered them to the car Patricia stayed behind to handle scheduling a second appointment and insurance information. 

Alex stepped up near his receptionist behind the counter. 

“How’d it go?” Patricia asked. 

Alex rubbed he eyes, “not well,” he answered vaguely, “I’ll be out of town for the next two day on family business, but I’d like to see them again for a longer session afterwards.”

“Of course,” she immediately replied, “anything to help them through this.”

After a few minutes they had a time set for right after the twins got done with school. Satisfied, Patricia walked out to her car where her husband and children were waiting. 

——————————————

Dipper gave a fleeting glance towards their closed and barricaded door before turning to his sister. Her head was still buried in her sweater. 

Dipper heaved a breath, “look Mable what happened wasn’t your-“

“It was my nightmare that woke them up,” she interrupted. 

“And it was my job to take care of the door,” he snapped back without missing a beat, “the fact is if you haven’t woken them up I would have.” 

There was a pause then Mable’s head appeared from within her sweater. 

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Dipper asked softly. 

Mabel shifted to face her brother, “it was when I was in that prison. During the trial I made the choice to stay, and they- you were,” she sobbed unable to continue, “and the worst part was I didn’t even care. I was happy to just stay there, and if I lost you so be it.”

In an instant Dipper was on his sister’s bed wrapping her up in a hug. After a moment Mabel pulled away. 

“Ok,” she said, “what was your nightmare about?”

Dipper knew better than to try and deny it so he replied, “it was about how after everything Grunkle Stan didn’t get his memories back. Even- even at the end.”

Mable wrapped her arms around him, “he remembered,” she whispered. 

Dipper returned the hug, “and you got out,” he replied. 

Somehow the words sounded more hollow than usual.


	2. Prologue part two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please note that I have never actually been to a therapist so this portrayal may not be the most accurate.

The hand of their mother on Dipper and Mable’s shoulder would have normally been comforting, but today it was a firm unyielding chain pushing them back to the therapist. Back to the reminder of their mistakes. Alex was standing in the lobby waiting for them this time, but when they both got closer he raised a hand. 

“Actually for today I want to do an individual session for the both of you,” he explained, “Dipper you come with me, Mabel feel free to sit down with your parents I’ll work with you next.”

“What?” Dipper objected looking to his sister. 

Her face was terrified. She needed him to get through this. The two of them quickly looked towards their mothers a pleading look on her face. 

“Go on Dipper,” she insisted despite the uncertainty on her face, “You’ll be fine.”

Seeing no way out of this Dipper reluctantly followed Alex down the hall. He led Dipper down a hall behind the door separating the office from the waiting room. Alex opened a door to the same room they sat in before and gestured for Dipper to sit. 

“Now Dipper,” Alex began as Dipper sat stiffly on the chair, “I want to try something different today. Why don’t you tell me about the,” he looked at his notes, “gnome incident?”

Dipper’s brow furrowed in confusion. How had he known about that? Had their parents told him. That had to have been it. He was just paranoid after everything. 

“Well,” Dipper shifted, “it all started when I found this journal in the woods.”

“A journal in the woods?” Alex repeated, “and this journal wasn’t damaged in any way by the elements or woodland creatures?”

“If you had let me finish,” Dipper snapped at him, “I would have said that it wasn’t just lying on the ground. There was a fake tree that held a switch that opens up a hidden door in the grass.”

“A fake tree?” He repeated, “and how exactly did you figure this out?”

“I was hammering signs for my Grunkle-“

“In the middles the woods?”

“Well technically yes but there’s paths though it that tourists walk.”

“And this fake tree near the path hadn’t been noticed before than.”

“Well,” Dipper confessed, “I might have gone slightly off the path.”

Alex gave him a disapproving look but gestured at Dipper to continue. For the next hour the session went the same. Dipper would get maybe a sentence into his story then Alex would interrupt and analyze every small thing that was “wrong” with what he said. By the end of the hour Dipper had barely gotten to the part where he believed Norman was a zombie, and it took all his patience to not punch Alex. 

When the twins finally returned home after Mable had her torture- er therapy- session Dipper went to their room burring his face into a pillow and screamed. 

“Pat pat,” Mable whispered patting Dipper’s head, “you ok bro bro?”

“Yeah,” Dipper answered sarcastically his voice muffled by the pillow, “being treated like everything I say is either stupid or crazy. Just how I wanted to spend my day.”

Mable sat on his bed, “adults sure can be stupid,” Dipper gave a grunt of agreement. Mable shifted thinking of something, “are you ok? We were running in gym today and I know your ribs had to have been bugging you.”

Dipper rolled rubbing the bruises on his chest. In an instant he was in a different place entirely.

——————————————

Bill cackled as they struggled in his grasp, and with a sadistic glee he squeezed his hand tighter. It got to the point where Dipper swore he could feel his ribs pressing against his lungs. Just as darkness invaded his vision Bill let up. 

“Can’t have you passing out on me yet Pinetree,” he taunted, “where’s the fun in that?”

——————————————

“Dipper!” 

Dipper joisted our of his memories at Mable’s call, “Yeah I’m fine,” he said remembering her questions, “that stuff Grunkle Ford gave us stopped it from getting any worse.” 

Mable shifted, “Dipper everything is gonna be ok right? I mean everyone thinks we’re crazy.”

“You are crazy,” Dipper teased lightly, “but I promise everything is gonna be fine. We know it’s all real and as long as we have that we’ll get though it.”

“Right,” Mable agreed, “if either of us get stupid promises the other will stop them?”

“Yeah,” Dipper agreed, “promise.”

——————————————

Dipper started blankly at his ceiling. As he waited for Mable. They had been going to therapy every day for a month now, but honestly it felt far longer. As it was a weekend today’s session had been even longer than normal, and it had been more brutal than normal too. While Dipper had told his story he had been made to stop several times until he could find all of the ways what he had said didn’t make sense. 

Mable walked though the door slamming it closed behind her. In an instant she was on her bed face buried in a pillow and she screamed. 

“”That bad huh?” Dipper asked sitting up. 

“At least you can be half asleep for yours,” Mable said her voice muffled by the pillow, “considering how early you go.”

“Yeah,” he agreed softly. He had no idea why on the weekend their appointments were so far apart. To him it just meant more driving for their parents. 

“Mable?” Dipper called out after a minute of silence, “it was real right? It all really happened?”

Mable sat upright in an instant at his words, “of course it was real!” She insisted, “if it wasn’t we have some interesting injuries to explain.”

“Right,” Dipper whispered rubbing his arm.

——————————————

Mable stared at the boxes surrounding them. Started next week this would no longer be her room and she would be alone. Her parents told them that they were getting to old to share a room and that this was a sign of how mature they had gotten. Any attempts to bring up going back to Gravity Falls over the summer was met was bold faced no. 

“Dipper?” She called out, “you up?”

Dipper shifted, “Yeah I’m up,” he slurred, “What’s wrong?”

“It was real right? It all really happened?” She whispered. 

“Right!” Dipper agreed instantly, “mom and dad can stop us from going back now, but when we turn eighteen they can’t tell us no. The moment we do well see everyone again.”

“Right,” Mable cheered softly. 

——————————————

Dipper rubbed his eyes as he stared at the screen of his laptop. His English essay was finally done. A glance at his clock told him it was almost eleven thirty. Midterms sure are brutal. As shadow fell over his face. He looked outside to see the causes of it was a ancient pinetree outside his window. He pressed his lips together and slammed his laptop shut. It was late, but he knew Mable was still up and right now he needed the reassurance. 

“Mable?” Dipper called out from her doorframe. The sound of clicking keys stopped, “it was all real right? It all really happened.”

There was a pause, “of course it did,” she said softly, “don’t be a dummy.”

“Right,” he agreed walking back to his own room. 

——————————————

“Dipper?” Mable called our leaning against his door frame. It had been two years sense she had even talked to anyone from Gravity Falls, and she needed to ease her mind, “it was all real right? It all really happened?”

Dipper’s form didn’t shift but she knew him well enough to know he was awake. After a minute of silence she slowly slid down the doorframe curling in on herself. 

“Right,” She whispered as a tear slowly streaked down her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PHPRULHV FDQ EH D IXQQB WKLQJ, VKRRWLQJ VWDU.

**Author's Note:**

> vkhhvk glgq'w brx nlgv douhdgb pdnh wkh ZURQJ dqg erulqj fkrlfh rq wkh zkroh idqwdvb yv uhdowb wklqj?


End file.
